Elevator



March ll, 1930. F A BROWNE 1,749,872

ELEVATOR Filed Feb 13. 1928 Ply Patented Mar. A11, 19730 UNITED STATES v'PATENT OFFICE FRANK A. BROWNE,

OF WAYNE, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE BARBER ASPHALT GINIA ELEVATOR Application led February 13, 1928. Serial No. 253,963.

This invention relates to an elevator of the type adapted to raise material from a supand discharge the same at an elevated point into a desired receptacle. The invention relates more specifically to an elevator which is arranged to discharge the material carried thereby into a casing which is substantially closed to the exterior.

In the drying of sand, it is customary to introduce the sand into a revolving drum through which hot flue gases pass from a furnace. It has been customary to introduce such sand or other material by means of a chute into the drying drum. It is found, however, that certain kinds of sand containing cementitious material will not flow readily down even a steep chute when the sand is moist and that such sand will stand vertically in a bank under certain conditions Without flowing. The result of this is that the chute ordinarily employed to conduct the cold, wet sand into a dryer becomes choked, so that it is necessary to station a man in position to push the sand down into the drying drum.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an elevator which will introduce material of the character described into a drum or other casing without the choking of the conveyor. It is a Jfurther object to provide an arrangement of elevator which may pass into an enclosed casing without substantially disturbing the pressure or draft therein by the inow of air from the exterior.

While the elevator is described below as applied to a dryer for drying sand or the like, it will be understood that the conveyor is equally applicable to apparatus in which itis desired to convey material into a casing without disturbing the draft or pressure therein and that it is also applicable to other apparatus in which it is desired to convey material having the consistency of wet sand.

In the drawing, there is shown partly in elevation and partly in section an elevator constructed in accordance with the invention applied to a sand dryer.

The sand dryer includes a rotary drum 2 which slopes upwardly and opens into a casing 4 having a iue 6, through which hot gases entering the drum from a Jfurnace may be drawn through an exhaust fan and discharged from a stack. The outer wall 8 of casing et is provided with tunnels 10 and 12 formed preferably of sheet metal and constituting passages communicating with the interior of the casing. A leXible chain 14 carrying buckets 16 passes through tunnels 10 and l2 and, in the interior of casing 4, engages about the periphery of a sprocket wheel 18, mounted on a shaft disposed transversely of the casing, which may be driven by any suitable means on the outside of the casing.

It will be noted from the drawing that the tunnels are just sufficiently large to permit the passage of the buckets and the chain with a minimum of clearance and that the length of each tunnel is greater than the distance between adjacent buckets on the chain. In this way the tunnels are always substantially closed by one or more buckets, so that there is no large opening between the interior of the casing and the outside atmosphere. The draft through the 'drum is accordingly relatively undisturbed by the openings through which the chain and buckets pass.

The buckets discharge the material while passing about sprocket wheel 18 and deliver it directlyT to the drum.

By the construction described, the buckets will raise the material in small quantities from a supply and there is no possibility of choking of any part of the elevating mechanism. It will be clear, of course, that in using the elevator in connection with the sand dryer or the like, the elevator might be placed at the furnace end of the drum rather than at the flue end.

Having now described my invention, what I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. In combination, a casing, a drum, a plurality of tunnels forming passages into the casing, and a iiexible bucket carrying member arranged to carry buckets through one of said tunnels into the casing and through the other of said tunnels out of the casing and adapted to raise material from a supply and discharge it within the drum.

r2. In combination, a rotary drum, a fine easing at one end of the drum, communicating therewith and enclosing one end thereof to receive gases therefrom, Vand a, exible bucket carrying conveyor extended through the casing and arranged to discharge material directly into said drum.

In testimony of Which invention, I have hereunto set my hand vat Philadelphia, on this fourthday of February, 1928.

. Y FRANK A. BROWNE. 

